Nick Smith must urgently intervene to avoid housing delays

National should urgently legislate to make the Unitary Plan operative while allowing a high court challenge to make its way through the legal process, Labour’s Auckland Issues spokesperson Phil Twyford says.

“Auckland urgently needs the Unitary Plan to be able to build the number of homes required to meet demand, but appeals by the Character Coalition and Auckland 2040 against provisions to establish higher density zones could stall implementation for up to a year.

“National must urgently legislate to make the Unitary Plan operable now, rather than after the lengthy legal process is finished. That way, any alterations ordered by the courts can be made at the conclusion of the process. The government should also make resources available to expedite these cases.

“For too long, restrictive planning rules have choked off Auckland’s development. Unless we can build more and build better, we can never make room for the city’s growing population.

“We can’t fix the housing crisis and ensure our children are able to afford to buy homes in Auckland in the future unless we get cracking on this.

“Seven years after the advent of the super city, we urgently need implementation of the Unitary Plan. Nick Smith needs to get off the side line and ensure we can get moving right away on fixing the housing crisis,” says Phil Twyford.